Christians in the Middle East must maintain their faith despite the obstacles they face in the region, Pope Benedict XVI said during an open-air mass in Amman, Jordan on Sunday.

The Pope held mass at a local sports stadium, which was packed with a crowd of 20,000, and was joined by the Latin rite patriarch of Jerusalem, Archbishop Fouad Twal.

Catholics from across the Middle East attended the mass, waving flags from Lebanon, Syria and Iraq, among other countries.

"The Catholic community here is deeply touched by the difficulties and uncertainties which affect the people of the Middle East," Benedict said, speaking in English.

"May you never forget the great dignity which derives from your Christian heritage, or fail to sense the loving solidarity of all your brothers and sisters in the church throughout the world."

The Christian population in the Middle East has been on a steady decline over the past several years, mainly due to fears about violence and economic hardship. In Jordan, where Benedict began his first Middle East visit on Friday, Vatican estimates put the Christian population at less than two per cent.

In Iraq, many Christians fled sectarian violence that broke out after the U.S.-led invasion in 2003. Christians faced rape and kidnapping, and many were killed, while churches were bombed.

Egyptian Christians, who make up about 10 per cent of the county's 76 million people, have strained relations with Muslims and violence has broken out between the two groups in recent years.

Meanwhile, Palestinian Christians, caught between Muslims and Jews in the Holy Land, have been leaving the region in great numbers, immigrating to the U.S., Canada and South America, said CTV's Middle East Bureau Chief Janis Mackey Frayer.

The second intifada, which began after the last papal visit in 2000, the construction of security barriers and checkpoints, and the rise of Hamas in towns such as Bethlehem have all had a negative impact on many Christians' sense of security and stability, as well as the economic viability of the region.

"So (Christians) figure that with all of these factors combined, if they have the chance to make a life in another part of the world they are certainly going to try and do it," Mackey Frayer told CTV Newsnet on Sunday in a telephone interview from Jerusalem.

During his homily on Sunday, Benedict called for Christians to get the "material and moral assistance" they need, and offered praise to Christian women in the region who have "devoted their lives to building peace and harmony."

Later on Sunday, Benedict will travel from Amman to Bethany past the Jordan River, where Christ was baptized. He is also scheduled to bless the foundation stones of Latin and Greek Melkite churches.

On Monday, he will travel to Israel for four days, during which time he will also visit the Palestinian territories.

Benedict has said that the goal of his trip is to foster improved relations between Christians and Jews, Christians and Muslims, and the Vatican and Israel, but his visit has been met with some resistance.

The Muslim Brotherhood in Jordan has boycotted the Pope's visit because he has yet to formally apologize for comments he made three years ago, in which he quoted a Medieval text that suggested the Prophet Muhammad's teachings were "evil and inhuman."

Jordan's top religious adviser commended the Pope for expressing his "regret" after that speech, but many Muslims want a full apology.

And Benedict has the task of mending a strained relationship with Jews, who were angered earlier this year when he revoked the excommunication of a conservative bishop who denies the Holocaust.

With files from The Associated Press